U.S. National Futsal Team to Play in Futsal Goal Cup in December in Anaheim

NewsNov 21, 2003

CHICAGO (November 20, 2002) — U.S. National Futsal Team head coach Keith Tozer has named a 16-player roster for the Futsal Goal Cup, a four-team tournament being staged from Dec. 5-7 at the Anaheim Convention Arena in Anaheim, Calif. The U.S. will square off against CONCACAF rivals Canada, Guatemala and Mexico in the international tournament, which will serve as important preparation for 2004 CONCACAF qualifying play next year in Costa Rica in advance of the 2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship being played in Chinese Taipei in November 2004.

The three-day event will feature three doubleheaders, with the U.S. facing Canada on Friday, Dec. 5, Guatemala on Saturday, Dec. 6 and Mexico on Sunday, Dec. 7. Tickets for the Futsal Goal Cup are available for purchase by calling U.S. Futsal at 510-836-8733 or by calling the Anaheim Convention Arena at 714-765-8980.

“This is our first real step in preparation for qualifying for the 2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship in Chinese Taipei,” said Tozer in making his selection. “There is no doubt that playing three tough regional rivals in three days will make us a better team and help us directly when the qualifying tournament is played next year in Costa Rica.”

The U.S. squad includes seven players who have never been capped for the U.S. National Futsal Team, including 34-year-old Doug Miller, a longtime standout outdoors with the Rochester Raging Rhinos in the A-League.

Tozer’s U.S. roster also includes four players from the Major Indoor Soccer League’s Philadelphia Kixx (including twice capped Pat Morris, and the uncapped Don D’Ambra, Joel Shanker and Kevin Sloan) and four players from the St. Louis Steamers (Jeff DiMaria and Steve Butcher, along with veteran Daryl Doran and Brett Phillips, who has earned 10 caps in goal for the U.S.). The most capped player on Tozer’s roster is defender Sean Bowers (23 games, 5 goals) of the San Diego Sockers.

Futsal is a sport that is a derivative of soccer and played with five-man teams on a basketball style court, with no walls and a low bouncing ball, unlike the traditional sport of U.S. indoor soccer played with six-man squads and walls.